Tuesday, March 20, 2018
Blue Jackets 5, Bruins 4, OT
BOSTON
Cam Atkinson scored 2:55 into overtime to lift the Blue Jackets to their eighth straight victory, spoiling a splendid NHL debut for Bruins forward Ryan Donato.Sonny Milano, Boone Jenner, Thomas Vanek and Artemi Panarin also scored for the Blue Jackets. Nick Foligno had two assists, and Vanek and Jenner each added one. Joonas Korpisalo stopped 34 shots. Atkinson cut in on the left wing and fired a wrister past Rask for the game-winner. Columbus moved into a tie with Philadelphia with 85 points, but the Flyers hold the tiebreaker for third place in the Metropolitan Division and the Blue Jackets hold the first wild card in the Eastern Conference. Donato had a goal and two assists for Boston, which moved a point behind idle Tampa Bay for first in the Atlantic. Riley Nash, Brad Marchand and David Krejci also scored for the Bruins, and Tuukka Rask finished with 20 saves. The Blue Jackets trailed by two late in the second period before scoring three consecutive goals to take a 4-3 lead.
Predators 4, Sabres 0
BUFFALO, N.Y.
Pekka Rinne stopped 35 shots for his eighth shutout of the season and the Nashville Predators set a franchise record by earning a point in their 15th consecutive game with a win over the Buffalo Sabres. Mike Fisher and Ryan Johansen scored goals 4:34 apart in the second period, and Filip Forsberg and Ryan Hartman sealed the victory by scoring in the final four minutes. The NHL-leading Predators improved to 14-0-1 in their past 15, and also extended their team-best road winning streak to nine straight. Rinne won his 11th straight to match his personal best in a stretch in which he’s allowed just 18 goals. The shutout was the 51st of his 12-year career and third in nine games. Minor-league call-up Linus Ullmark stopped 28 shots, starting in place of Robin Lehner, who was sidelined with an undisclosed injury.
Panthers 2, Canadiens 0
MONTREAL
Roberto Luongo stopped 28 shots for his third shutout of the season and 76th of his career, leading the Florida Panthers to a victory over the Montreal Canadiens. Aaron Ekblad and Aleksander Barkov scored to help the Panthers inch closer to a playoff position, pulling three points behind idle new Jersey for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. Antti Niemi finished with 38 saves for Montreal, which was shut out for the second straight game and 12th time this season — including three against the Panthers.
Kings 4, Wild 3, OT
ST. PAUL, MINN.
Jeff Carter scored his second goal of the game with 33.8 seconds left on the clock in overtime and the Kings recovered after giving up a two-goal lead to beat the Wild. Tanner Pearson and Dustin Brown also scored for Los Angeles, which has alternated wins and losses over its past nine games. The Kings pulled into a tie with Anaheim for third place in the Pacific Division with 86 points, and hold the tiebreaker over the Ducks. Jonathan Quick made 24 saves for the Kings, who appeared headed to a second straight loss until Brown tipped home a point shot from Drew Doughty with 46.5 seconds left in regulation. Doughty finished with three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek scored for the first time in 13 games with 2:31 left to give Minnesota the lead after trailing 2-0. Eric Staal added his 39th and Zach Parise had his second goal in three games for the Wild. Devan Dubnyk stopped 26 shots for Minnesota, which is in third in the Central Division, four points ahead of Colorado.
Associated Press